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Fire Weather Concerns; Record Warmth Spreads

The Plains to the mid-Mississippi Valley continue with warm and dry conditions. Any fires that initiate could spread quickly. The warm temperatures will expand across the Southern Plains into the Southwest where numerous records are expected through the weekend. Meanwhile, a cold front will move southward across the northern Plains and Great Lakes region where some snow will develop this weekend. Read More >

Overview

Late in the evening on Wednesday, May 11, thunderstorms moved across south central South Dakota, while others developed over the Black Hills and moved northeast overnight. Portions of the western South Dakota plains were hit by multiple thunderstorms overnight, which brought damaging winds and large hail. The most severe wind damage occurred in the Red Owl area, where several outbuildings were substantially damaged or completely destroyed. A damage survey determined the damage was caused by very strong straight-line winds, not a tornado. While the highest measured wind gust was 76 mph, the structure damage indicated wind gusts were higher than 80 mph. 

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